Q. Tell me a little bit about yourself! A. Born and raised in RI. I am 35, I have no formal training in art and I didn’t really start to take it seriously until around 2012. I remember hearing a lot about how impractical being an artist was growing up from just about everyone but my parents. I joined the Marines right out of high school in 2001 and spent 4 years in the infantry. I did two deployments, one of which was Afghanistan in 2004. I kept up the art skills I had learned primarily from my father, who is a R.I.S.D. graduate and Landscape architect. I used his lessons in sketching, shading, perspectives and, most of all, shadows to illustrate my letters home and journals while serving overseas. I ended up drawing a lot of tattoos for my fellow marines as well as my own. In 2005, I got out of the Marines as a Sergeant and started my new and current career as a firefighter. On the side I would work a lot of different construction jobs – landscaping, operating heavy machinery, building construction, definitely a jack of all trades and always keeping very busy. Q. How did you get into art? What kind of art do you create? A. In 2012, one of my sisters, who was a graphic designer for a restaurant group at the time, asked me if I could do a mural for Rick’s Roadhouse, a restaurant in Providence, Rhode Island. I said yes despite never having done anything like a mural before. I really didn’t have much of a portfolio at all and honestly didn’t have clue what I was doing, but I said yes knowing I would figure it out. Soon after, I also was approached by a friend to draw a collage of African animals for a cover ad in a hunting magazine. After that is was word of mouth that lead me from one mural job to next.
“I think it’s more about persistence than anything. 10% talent and 90% persistence will get you anywhere you want to go.” at the fire department remind me of the best parts of my time in the Marines. My off time is spent creating, drawing, building, painting, and sculpting— either for myself or commissioned work. Q. What inspires you to create your art? A. A lot of the artwork I do for myself can be easily tied to my experiences in the Marines or the Fire Department. I find it hard to truly describe or convey to others the emotions and conflict involved in being a veteran of both war and all that is involved in being a firefighter. I am lucky enough to have a talent that helps me express it, if only for myself. I think it would foolish not to use a tool like that. There are many veterans struggling much worse who would likely love to have such opportunity. I am also wild life enthusiast, so any study of animals is always fun and not quite as emotive or serious. And any oppurtunity to draw or sculpt wildlife is always fun and relaxing. Q. How do you create your art?
A. Currently, I am working a final design for an 20’x 50’ exterior mural for Xaco Taco. A modern Mexican restaurant in Downtown Providence, formally home to Rick’s Roadhouse. It also happens to be the exact wall a painted my first mural on in 2012.
A. Trial and error. However, for commissioned murals I have a very detailed process that took me some time to refine. When errors can cost money, you have to be confident in your process. I will normally do several smaller studies of any large mural before starting. I can then take the smaller image and project it larger, making myself a stencil to then expand upon.
Q. Is this your full time job?
Q. What is your favorite kind of art to create?
A. No. I am a firefighter and an artist. I find the two very different worlds are a wonderful balance for me. Structure and an opportunity to help others mixed with adrenaline and the brotherhood formed
A. Definitely murals, the bigger the better. I love seeing something big come to life. Sculpting is a close second. I still have a lot to learn about the casting process, but I still love it.
Q. Are you working on any projects now?
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